I’m sure I speak for a lot of fellow-SEO people when I tell you that reading how some (far too many) regard SEO as a scam fairly makes me bristle.

Why? Because I adhere to a very strict personal code, and uphold my principles consistently. I know plenty of other SEOs who take their ethics seriously too. We would never entertain the thought of making a living at something regarded as a criminal activity, or even ’shady’ for that matter.

I acknowledge that there are people in our industry whose ethics leave a lot to be desired, and who definitely do not offer value for money. But hey, you’ll find that in any industry. When an accountant shows up in the news having fiddled thousands out of their life savings, do you get news flashes trashing the entire accounting industry? Of course not, so why single us out for this dubious honor?

It was actually gratifying for me to read over at Search Engine Watch that one particular SEO company that had been found to be scamming clients finally got its come-uppance.

For some time this question has been discussed again and again: Are SEOs capable of sustaining self-imposed standards that negate the necessity for formal and legal industry standards? Or should we go the formal route?

While I accept the majority opinion (example here) that it would be impossible, and even counter-productive to try and impose standards on the SEO industry, it was because I don’t want to be associated with scammers in any way that I broached the subject of standards in my interview with Rand Fishkin of SEOmoz back in August, 2007.

But my opinion was swayed just the other day by Michael Gray. I accept his argument that perhaps standards wouldn’t be good either for us or for the industry. He likens SEO standards to the notable failure of the No Child Left Behind plan.

As I’m writing this post, Search Engine World came out with some news that maybe the debate among SEOs on whether or not we need industry standards is about to be solved: It seems the FTC is considering imposing standards industry-wide whether we all like it or not.

Whatever happens, along with hundreds of other SEOs, I will continue my work, committed to the very highest standards that I can impose on myself:

My strategies for reassuring clients are as follows:

  • I spend countless hours reading up on the industry to make sure that I’m using the best and latest techniques for optimization.
  • I never make wild claims for my work or anyone else’s.
  • I never, ever use any knowledge that may, even as a remote possibility, attach any hint of controversy to a client’s site.
  • I don’t just avoid sites that are questionable and are associated with questionable practices–I avoid their owners too.
  • I always work hard to get the best possible results for my clients, whether I’m optimizing their site, writing first-class content, or creating link-bait. It’s hard work and it requires a great deal of background knowledge.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if I’ve left out something important here, so if you’re an SEO or you follow the industry closely and you can think of important strategies I’ve left out here, please add them in a comment.